


The Understrays

by AParticularlyLargeBear



Category: Parahumans Series - Wildbow
Genre: Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Multi, Polyamory, Suggestive Themes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-29
Updated: 2020-01-29
Packaged: 2021-02-27 20:21:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22469311
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AParticularlyLargeBear/pseuds/AParticularlyLargeBear
Summary: Lisa and the others probably have something to do, but it's really warm and comfortable snuggling under all these blankets...
Relationships: Alec | Regent/Brian Laborn/Lisa Wilbourn/Rachel Lindt/Taylor Hebert
Comments: 34
Kudos: 126





	The Understrays

The doorbell rang with a ferocity betraying that this was neither the first, second, nor third attempt at hailing the building’s occupants.

At this time of asking, Lisa’s eyes finally drifted open, heavy with sleep. She lay there for a couple of seconds as wakefulness coalesced a few seconds behind consciousness. Her eyelids fluttered, bobbing open and closed. The snug comfort and warmth of a pile of blankets was seductively dragging her back towards slumber, to say nothing of the pair of arms secured around her waist and body pressed against her.

Again, the increasingly insistent doorbell pealed, sailing past ‘I need to speak with these individuals quite urgently’ on pace to blow right by ‘I am very irritated with this lack of response’ on unerring course towards ‘Oh my god you lazy assholes I know you’re in there answer the fucking door.’

But... so comfy...

Her eyes fluttered again. Someone would get it in a sec, right? Lisa would get up if nobody else did in the next like, two minutes or so.

The next volley of dings was so violent that Lisa halfway expected to hear their guest’s fingers punch through the wall.

“Guyyyys,” Lisa mumbled. “Door.”

“Well I can’t get up,” said a voice from somewhere behind and south of Lisa. “Brian’s on top of me.”

“You burrow under there.”

“Yes I do. He’s like a big warm space heater that makes cute noises when I put my tongue—”

“Alec.” Rachel’s voice managed to carry sharp warning even muffled against the front of Lisa’s shoulder.

“Yeah yeah. No TMI in the snugpile.”

“Can someone just get the door?” murmured Taylor, breath eddying across Lisa’s neck and sending a shiver down her spine. 

“Fine.” Rachel extricated her arm from underneath and around Lisa—evincing a bereft whine—and rose, a blanket sliding off of her. Lisa watched her go with half-lidded eyes, which widened like saucers as the realisation that Rachel was wearing a tanktop and not much else permeated her sleepy brain.  
  
“Rachel!”

“Hm?” She looked back over her shoulder.

“Clothes!”

“Eh.”

Already feeling the secondhand embarrassment—or rather, firsthand, since Rachel felt no shame ever—Lisa watched Rachel the whole way to the door, which wasn’t all that far away from their shared floor bed slash den.

...Nice view.

Midway through a ringing spree roughly translatable to ‘I swear to god if you don’t open up right this goddamn second I’m going to kick the door down’, Rachel yanked the door open with a barked “What?”

“Jesus! Put some fricking pants on!” the explosion of noise and rampant disregard for the doorbell’s wellbeing could only mean one person. Lisa craned her neck to see the pallid form of Victoria Dallon standing at the threshold, a pair of sunglasses on her forehead. Taylor made a noise of protest at the movement and clung harder to Lisa like a great big koala.

Rachel doubled down on the immodesty, planting her feet apart. “No. What do you want?”

Shuttering her eyes with her fingers, Victoria responded. “There’s something I need you and your girlfriends and boyfriends to take a look at.”

“You can call them my pack. They won’t mind.”

“It’s true, we won’t!” called Alec. Lisa heard him shifting around, then give a low, contented sigh.

Given her condition, Victoria didn’t blush, but her reaction told its own tale. “You—that’s—” she spluttered. “You’ve got a lot of nerve, speaking to me again!”

“What?” Alec drawled. “I didn’t do anything.”

“Do you have any idea how embarrassing it is to tell an elder werewolf that she makes a cute couple with a guy it turns out is her _son?_ ”

Rachel snorted. Lisa could _hear_ Alec’s smirk. “I accept no responsibility for assumptions you may or may not have made.”

“I asked for help and you trolled me!”

“Alec,” Lisa said severely, twisting around—with a little difficulty thanks to the Taylor glued to her—to narrow her eyes at Alec, just barely visible peeking out from behind Brian’s chest, amber eyes glittering. “Did you tell Victoria all packs date each other?”

“I uh…” he foundered in the face of her unexpected sternness. “Well, yeah?”

She held the glare for a couple of seconds, then grinned. “Good job. That’s hilarious.”

“Hey!”  
  
“Agreed,” murmured Taylor, who Lisa wasn’t convinced was actually all the way awake.

“Oh my god, how do you date these assholes?” groaned Victoria.

“Because they’re mine,” said Rachel, warm and fierce both.

“You know, I don’t think I can argue with that,” said Victoria begrudgingly. “But if you agree to this job, I need you guys to be on your best behaviour. It’s a sensitive situation.”

Taylor was wearing her lupine ears, and one of them immediately quirked up. She hadn’t got the hang of hiding the tell yet. Lisa couldn’t resist giving her a quick scratch behind that raised ear, causing a noise halfway between yip and blissful sigh. Taylor shot her a cool look in reply, but she wasn’t fooling anyone.

Alec had propped his elbows on Brian and was leaning across him, smiling disingenuously at Victoria. “Name one time I haven’t been on my best behaviour.” 

“I have a literal list.”

“Detail—!” Alec squawked in alarm as Brian’s arms suddenly unfolded, squeezing him into a hug against his chest. Alec put up a token resistance, but his squirming was more of an excuse to tuck his head away under Brian’s chin. He stretched out an arm to paw at Taylor, trying to co-opt her for fresh cuddles, but Taylor was not to be moved. No snuggle theft for you this day.

Lisa returned her attention to Victoria and Rachel. Averting her eyes from the tangle of limbs, Victoria cleared her throat. “I’m serious though. You could land me in major shit with important people if you screw around.”

“So you could say the stakes—” Alec’s mouth was muffled by Brian’s hand.

“No puns.” Brian hadn’t even opened his eyes yet, voice calm and serene.

“We know how to behave,” said Rachel, in defiance of the evidence on display.

Victoria nodded, though not before shooting Alec a dirty look. “I need some unaffiliated noses and the Strays are the best fit for the job. Three days’ work. Interested?”

“Yep.” Rachel glanced at them all. “Sound good?” The four of them had the option to dissent, but usually didn’t. She was the leader of the pack, after all.

The others made hums and mms of agreement, and Lisa summarised. “All aboard, boss.”

“Good.”

Victoria hesitated. “So uh… you want I give you the location? I don’t want to be all awkward hanging around while you guys get ready.”

“Don’t want you here anyway.”

Silence descended like a lead balloon. An interesting array of emotions crossed Victoria’s face.

Lisa felt compelled to intervene before awkward hell froze them all over. “This is uh, kind of our spot, you know? No offence.”

“We’re territorial,” added Taylor, detaching one arm from Lisa’s waist to loop it around Brian’s bicep. Lisa scooted slightly closer to accommodate.

“Right. None taken. I think. I’ll get out of your hair. Fur.” Victoria glowered at the sunlight streaming in from the front door, replaced her sunglasses, and stepped outside with an airy wave.

“Everyone up,” commanded Rachel, to a chorus of complaints. She folded her arms.

Reluctantly, Lisa and Taylor clambered up out of the pile of blankets and limbs, stretching and yawning. Alec was more stubborn, but Brian simply hoisted him up in his arms, which was probably what he was going for in the first place.

“Do I have to go as a person?” ventured Taylor. “I don’t really feel like it today…”

“Go get your lead,” said Rachel. Taylor beamed and hurried out of the room, black fur already creeping up her arms and legs.

After watching her go, Lisa turned to Rachel. “She can’t do that all the time.”

“She can if she wants,” Rachel replied stubbornly.

“Socialisation!”

“Next time.” 

A concession! Well, Lisa wasn’t going to push her luck. She nodded. “Fine.”

Rachel looked at the boys. “Brian put Alec down and get dressed.”

“I will once he lets go.”

“Never.”

“See what I m—” Brian gave an undignified yelp as Alec did _something_ to his chest, just out of Lisa’s view. “You son of a bitch!” He hurled a wildly giggling Alec back into the blanket pile.  
  
“Yeah I am,” said Alec after he came to rest, sounding exceedingly pleased with himself.

Brian’s cheeks had darkened further. The flush most definitely wasn’t anger. “Dangerous game, Alec.”

“Maybe I like danger.”

Lisa groaned in exasperation. “Stop flirting and get dressed!”

“Oh?” Alec grinned. “You gonna force me—oshit!” Rachel, having had enough of this, simply bundled up the blanket Alec was on and hoisted him onto her shoulder like a sack. He instantly started to wriggle, but Rachel adjusted her grip, secured either end of the blanket, and walked out.

“Our boyfriend’s a dumbass,” said Lisa fondly.

“Yeah.” Brian linked his arm in hers and instinctively, she rested her head against his shoulder. “Let’s go get ready.”

“Okay.” Lisa paused. “Five more seconds.”

Brian chuckled and pulled her into a hug. 

They stayed longer than that, but who was counting?


End file.
